Fishermen's Memorial Terminal detail, circa 1985. Office of Arts and Cultural Affairs Public Art Photographs (Item No. 57717), Seattle Municipal Archives.
In 1971, a city ordinance established the Seattle Arts Commission (SAC) to promote development of and public interest in the arts, as well as to advise the city on cultural and artistic development. The fifteen-member body replaced a predecessor agency, the Municipal Arts Commission, and staff support was originally provided by the Seattle Center. The Commission was given cabinet-level status in the city government in 1976.
In 2002, a reorganization abolished the existing SAC, created a new Seattle Arts Commission made up of volunteers and a new city Office of Arts and Cultural Affairs (OACA), and divided the functions of the old SAC between the two new organizations. The current commission is comprised of 16 citizen volunteers appointed by the Mayor and City Council. OACA was brought into the Executive Department in 2013 and its name was changed to the Office of Arts and Culture.
The department supports arts groups, community festivals, and neighborhood arts councils; funds and promotes public art, and promotes Seattle as a cultural destination. It also oversees the One Percent for Art program (one of the nation’s first), where one percent of Seattle’s capital improvement project funds are reserved for public art. Since the program began in 1973, it has acquired nearly 3,000 artworks.
In 1991, the office sponsored "In Public: Seattle 1991," an international public art project that brought local and international artists to Seattle to create new artworks in sites around the city, including neighborhoods, schools, media, and the new Seattle Art Museum. Related public programs included a symposium, educational events, performances, and an exhibition in the Security Pacific Bank gallery.
This collection contains photographic documentation of public art throughout Seattle. Project locations vary from neighborhood streets to Seattle Center, from parks to utility substations. Also included in the collection is one box of proposals submitted by artists seeking support for public art projects as part of the "In Public: Seattle 1991" program.
Seventy-six images from Box 5, Folder 6 have been scanned and are
available on our digital platform.
Records are open to the public.
[Title of image, date. Item number.] Office of Arts and Cultural Affairs Public Art Photographs, Record Series 7406-01, Box [number], Folder [number]. Seattle Municipal Archives.
This collection is indexed under the following headings in the online catalog. Researchers desiring materials about related topics, persons, or places should search the catalog using these headings.
The following section contains a detailed listing of the materials in the collection.